Drones and other aircraft not helping with firefighting efforts are prohibited in temporary flight restriction zones around wildfires.
The sun sets behind smoke along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, CA, during the Palisades Fire on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. A firefighting plane that drops more than 1,500 gallons of water at a time is grounded after it collided with a drone flying illegally
In the temporary flight restriction zones established around wildfires, all aircraft not working toward firefighting efforts are banned. To ensure no other drones were in the air, crews had to ground all firefighting aircrafts for between 15 and 30 minutes, when they could’ve been battling the growing Palisades fire, Thomas said.
Interfering with firefighting efforts on public land is a federal offense punishable by up to a year in prison. The Federal Aviation Administration may impose a civil penalty of up to $75,000 on any drone pilot that interferes with wildfire suppression, law enforcement or emergency response operations while temporary flight restrictions are in place.
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